Family Ties
by Alexia Mae
Summary: This story focuses on McSteamy and his relationships with family, Derek, Lexie and the other Drs at Seattle Grace. When his history comes back and finds him accidently, what will he do? Who will he confide in? Will he change? please read and review xxx
1. Chapter 1

OK, never written a Greys Anatomy fan-fic before and this story line just popped into my head at a totally random time when I was driving back from Alton Towers (that's a theme park in the UK for all you yanks ). So yeah, I don't own any characters except my own, please read, enjoy and review. I'll continue if I get good feed back. Thanks 

Seattle Grace. One of the busiest hospitals in Seattle. And the breeding ground for gossip. That's not to say that Seattle Grace was not professional, despite it's school yard like features. Boys chasing after girls. Best friends switching one day to the next. An argument between two people suddenly has the entire surgical floor in opposition. And relationships blooming, ending, starting again, ending again…it was a lot to keep up with.

Dr Meredith Grey walked through the automatic doors with her steady, handsome boyfriend Dr Derek Shepherd hand in hand. They chatted easily and headed for the elevator. Meredith's cheeks and nose were pink from the cold, and Derek's hair neatly wind swept from the sea breeze swirling through the city. Derek fixed her collar and smoothed the creases in her coat as they waiting. As the elevator arrived, they stepped in, it was empty, the perfect place to snatch a last kiss before their shift began. Just as the doors slid shut, they lent into each other, lips puckered eyes closing. The doors were pulled open again and they jumped apart as Dr Mark Sloan (McSteamy to the surgical girls) raced in, red faced. He'd obviously been running. His black leather jacket was zipped to the top and he blew onto his purple hands then laughed.

"Sorry, my bad" He grinned and turned around as the doors shut again "Continue were you left off".

Mark and Derek had been best friends through high school and college back in their home town. They had done everything together, studying, worked, played, lived together. Derek's family had accepted Mark as one of their own, as a son and brother. Mark revelled in his new family with the Shepherds. His own had been bitty and broken. His dad had died soon after a younger sibling had been born and left his wife and two children alone with little money. Soon after however, she had remarried a guy who didn't like Mark and Mark didn't like him. He had got as far away from that mess as he could. He would spend as much time at Derek's house after school, worked and studying on the weekend, spending Friday and Saturday nights at the Shepherds. When time came for his and Derek's graduation, Mark offered his three allocated tickets Derek's family, who would have much rather watched the two boys throw their caps in the air. Luckily, he and Derek both attended the same university to study medicine, and continued to live and play together. They were best friends and brothers through and through. They knew everything about one another. Mark was the best man and Derek and Addison's wedding and gave a beautiful speech which made Grandma Shepherd cry for hours. Their friendship sadly abruptly ended when Derek came home one rainy evening, climbed his stairs, opened his bedroom door and found Mark, naked, atop his beautiful red-haired wife, clothes strewn across the bedroom, bed covers on the floor. He didn't say a word. Just shut the door and left for Seattle the next morning.

That was years ago now. They had amended and become "best friends" again and could often be found gossiping like school girls at the nurses station. Derek would have to so often warn Mark off from girls. Mark had a bit of reputation for being a man whore, and had been told to keep away from Meredith's little sister Lexie, another Dr at Seattle Grace. He hadn't listened.

As the three of them emerged from staff room, followed by the other first year residents: Christina Yang and Alex Karev, they made their way to the reception of the surgical floor to pick up their charts for the day. Already gathered round the reception were Drs Izzie Stevens, George O'Malley, Lexie Grey and several other interns. And of course, Dr Bailey, (rudely called the Nazi for her sheer stubborn and strictness) the chief resident ready to dish out orders.

"Little Grey, Stevens, and I are in clinic" Bailey ordered. Lexie and Izzie dropped their charts, nodded and headed to the clinic. "Yang, Karev, with Dr Shepherd". Similarly they nodded and followed Derek down the hall to proceed with rounds of the post-op Neuro patients. "O'Malley, Grey. With Dr Sloan in plastics". As they were about to leave, Bailey added "if it gets slow. Come find me." They nodded and followed Mark down the other corridor to proceed with rounds.

Meanwhile, in the clinic, Izzie and Meredith's sister Lexie began working on various cases. Lexie sat down besides a teenage girl and what seemed to be her mother.

"Hello, I'm Dr Grey" she introduced herself as she closed the curtains "What can I do for you?"

The young girl looked about sixteen, but was very pale and thin. Her long brown hair hung in limp waves passed her shoulders, her scalp hidden by a pale blue and grey hat. She wore a woolly scarf to match, and mittens too. The girl avoided looking up from anywhere but the bed.

The woman, a small lady herself looked as though she would have been very pretty as a younger women, but age and a teenage daughter hadn't done her beauty any good. She was shy and meekish, similar to her daughter.

"My daughter, Ellie, she uh.. was mugged." The women started to explain. Lexie looked at the daughter with great concern. "she's been having trouble breathing since, and wont eat…and she's got marks… and you see… we need to make them go."

"Um.. right ok…I'll get" Lexie began.

"No, you don't understand, you have to make the marks go! She has to be flawless again". The mother stressed. Lexie raised an eyebrow suspiciously.

"Ok then Ellie?" Lexie began putting gloves on. "I'm going to have to take a look at those marks and your throat please."

Ellie cast her eyes towards her mother without moving her neck and looked nervous. Her mother nodded. Ellie slipped off her mittens with trembling hands to reveal bruised and swollen fingers. Lexie kept mum for the time being about the state of her hands. Ellie winced as she curled her fingers around the woollen scarf and pulled. As it slipped from protecting her neck, it exposed more bruises, redness, scratches, old scars, burns and lacerations. Lexie bit her lip as she did. Then gasped as she took a closer look at her throat. It was severely inverted. No wonder she was having trouble breathing, Lexie thought. Then something caught her eyes. Definite bruises in the shape of hand prints were the throat was inverted.

"And you said a mugger did this?" Lexie asked still gazing at the wounds.

"Yes…" The mother answered.

"And when was this?"

"Um… er…um… Two days ago?"

Lexie leant back "Why didn't you come sooner?"

"We didn't think it was that bad. And we were busy." Quietly she added "We don't have insurance yet. We've just moved to Seattle from the UK." She explained quietly.

Lexie nodded understanding "And you are sure it was a mugger. Not someone else…someone in the family for example? A bully at…"

The mother interrupted speaking quickly "No.. no family, no bully… a mugger.. wasn't it Ellie?"

"A mugger. In the street." Ellie whispered hoarsely.

For some reason, Lexie did not believe their story. She had seen cases of domestic violence during her lectures at college. She knew how people in that situation tended to act. This was one of them. She was sure.

"I best check with my resident Dr, Dr Steven's for how to continue. But first, Nurse Adler will give you a shot or morphine for the pain. Ok?" Lexie said standing up and removing her gloves. The mother reached for her daughters hand and stroked it gently. The young girl looked sad. Lexie wanted to hug her but had to remain professional. She couldn't get involved with a patient.

She stepped out from the curtains as a nurse stepped in to give Ellie pain relief. Lexie went to the desk, lent against it, tucked her hair behind her ears and wrote up the notes regarding this case. She included in it : 'possible result of domestic violence'. Then she headed to the other end of the clinic where she had spotted the blonde haired Dr Izzie talking to a man who seemed to have a 'severe' case of the 'man-flu'. As she got closer Lexie heard him demanding to be admitted over night.

"I'm sorry sir, but all your symptoms point towards a severe cold. I recommend home, bed rest and lots of fluids." Izzie said with her hands on her hips.

"Sorry to interrupt, Um, Dr Stevens… I have a case I need your help with if you can spare the time from this gentleman…" Lexie asked half smirking.

"Gladly!" Izzie said so only Lexie could hear. "I hope you feel better soon Mr Carmichael." And with that the two ladies walked away from him. "God I hate men who over react at the slightest thing. Wait. Strike that" She said as she saw Dr Alex Karev walk past "I hate men full stop." Alex and Izzie's relationship was too complicated for even them to understand. He had recently been acting more of an a**e-h**e than ever since he had released his emotions to Izzie and cried following the admittance of his girlfriend to the psychiatric ward. "Now what was it you needed help with Grey?"

Lexie explained her case to Izzie whose face dropped from a welcoming, helpful smile to a deeply disgusted face. "Sounds like domestic abuse to me." She decided. "The mother?"

"No," Lexie said thoughtfully. "I think she might be victimised as well… but like I said, I can't be sure. They're both really nervous and this mugging story doesn't seem to hold up"

"You're probably right. So, what do you think need's to be done now?" Izzie asked, to gauge Lexie's understanding of the situation.

"Erm, well. I've ordered her a shot of morphine for the pain. I was considering giving her an oxygen mask, but I don't want to hurt her anymore, or cause any more damage. But I think she's going to need an operation. Dr Sloan might need to reconstruct her trachea and other muscles in her throat." She looked up at Izzie who was a good head taller than her. "Maybe?"

"Very good Dr Grey. Don't question yourself. You know your stuff" Izzie smiled.

"Thanks Dr Stevens!" Lexie said, feeling proud, and suddenly more assure of herself. "I'll get on it straight away." Izzie nodded and they departed in other directions.

Up on the second floor, Mark Sloan, Meredith Grey and George O'Malley had just finished prepping a cancer patient for reconstructive surgery on her breasts. She seemed elated that she was free of the cancer and would have a breast back. Meredith and George were completely surprised by Mark Sloan's bedside manner. He was charming, and not in his sleazy "I want to get you into bed" way, which was his normal type of charm. The three of them left the room smiling.

"Dr Sloan? Would I be able to scrub in with you this afternoon? I really want to see this procedure done by you first hand." George said

"Nope, but good try brown nosing. You can go get me a Latte though." Mark said, still smiling. George laughed awkwardly and didn't move. "I'm not joking O'Malley".

"Oh…" And with that George ran off in search of a Latte.

Meredith shook her head and continued to follow Mr Steamy to the nurses station . "So," he started "Are you going to beg to scrub in now too?"

"Hell no." Replied Meredith.

"Good girl. You have spirit. You can scrub in."

Meredith Grinned, happy with her self and thankful to Derek for the advice of not brown-nosing around Mark Sloan. He liked them feisty.

As George brought back Mark's cup of Latte, and was told that Meredith would be the one scrubbing in, Lexie joined them at the nurses station.

"Dr Sloan…" She started.

"What little Grey?" He asked sounding bored already. Meredith and Lexie exchanged glances at the Drs nickname for Lexie, the younger sister of 'Big Grey'.

"I have a patient downstairs…."

"Odd that, in a hospital…" Mark joked.

Lexie closed her eyes for a second to imagine a world were Dr Sloan was funny. Then opened them and tried again "I have a patient downstairs. 16 year old girl. I think she's a victim of domestic abuse. But I'm not sure… Anyway…Dr Stevens and I believe she needs reconstructive surgery on her throat and that means we need you" She tried her best 'please don't shout at me' smile.

There was a moments silence before he said anything. "Take her to paediatrics."

"Paediatrics? But Sir…." Lexie began but was interrupted by her pager. As were Mark, Meredith and George's. Lexie read her 911. "It's my patient. She's stopped breathing."

The four of them raced down the corridor swirving in and out of nurses, doctors and patients alike. They ran across the walk way linking the two halves of the building, paying no attention to the beautiful sea view in one direction, and the mountain ranges in the other. They jumped down the stairs two at a time, earning a scolding from the Chief of Surgery, as they dashed across the foyer, across the road and into the clinic.

At the far end of the clinic, the curtains had been pulled round a cubical and they ran in that direction, flung the curtains aside and stepped in, catching their breath. Izzie turned her head from where she was trying to get Ellie to breathe.

"Were the hell have you been?" She yelled at them.

Meredith and George bustled past the mother and started helping Izzie with the young girl. Lexie went to the mother to explain what was happening. Mark took her chart and began to read.

As he did his face dropped.

He became pale and still. He looked at the little girl on the bed, bruises covering her body, unable to breathe, then back at the chart to where it read in bold letters :

NAME:ELLIE LOUISE SLOAN

Mark closed his eyes for a second, then looked at the women who was quivering with fright, looking over Lexie's shoulder at her daughter, fear in her eyes.

"Ok," Izzie announced "She's stable, and breathing. Good job Ellie!" Izzie looked at Mark. "What's wrong with him?"

Everyone looked at Mark Sloan.

"Markus?" The mother of the little girl said meekly.

"Mom?" Mark replied softly.


	2. Chapter 2

Hope you enjoyed my first chapter. Cant wait to read any reviews. Here's the next chapter, please read and review. Thanks : )

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The heads' of Izzie, Meredith, Lexie and George all snapped round to face Mark Sloan.

"Markus?" The mother of the little girl said meekly.

"Mom?" Mark replied softly.

Lexie looked between mother and son and saw the resemblance. And the differences. How could someone so tiny and soft produce something so…sleazy? She asked herself. Then she remembered that the little girl would be his sister. Though he'd never mentioned a sister. And they had spent enough time together, in the on call room for example…not that many words were exchanged.

"Mark!" the woman burst into floods of tears and pushed her way into Mark's muscle build arms. She buried her head into his chest and wept. Mark put his arms round her and rested his chin on her head as tears flowed freely down his chest.

"Get out" he mouthed at the interns. No one moved. "Out!" He said louder. They started moving for the gap in the curtain "Get out now!!!" he roared at them. Izzie, Meredith, George and Lexie hurried. Mark grabbed Lexie's wrist as she followed the others. "Not a word," He said, "To anyone. Wait for me there. All of you." And with that he closed the curtain in Little Grey's face.

His mother, finally regaining composure stepped back and sniffed. "Look at you Markus." She spoke quietly, barely above a whisper. "A doctor!"

"Surgeon." He corrected her. "Head of plastics here at Seattle Grace." His mothers eyes widened and warms with pride. He looked down at Ellie. His little sister. Last time he had seen her, she was crawling around on the floor, wearing only a diaper, sucking a pacifier, and clutching onto a small pink teddy giggling at nothing. Her hair was clipped out of her face with a pink slide, but she still had baby hair, being 3, and t stuck out in funny angles. Many times he had wondered what she had grown up to look like. He wondered whether she was a cheerleader at school, or a nerd at the back of the classroom that no one knew. Whether she was smart or slow. What her interests were? What they would do together, or what they'd buy their mom for her birthday? The boyfriend's he'd hate, and his girlfriends she'd like. He never got to experience any of that. Fair enough he went through it with Derek and his sisters… but not with his own. She wasn't how he'd imagined her. She was thinner, and looked so empty. He'd expecting someone confident and loud. Looking at her lying on the bed, delicate and sore he grew more and more concerned. He stepped away from his mom and went round the bed and sat on the edge of it. She was out of it, her eyes closed and oxygen mask on her face. He looked in her grey eyes and smiled softly. For a moment, he though he saw one corner of her mouth twitch into a smile, only for a moment, then it was gone. He brushed her hair away from her neck and shoulders gently and took a better inspection of the damage he would be repairing. He sat back. Angry and frustrated.

"So… if you're the head of plastics… will you be operating on her?" His mom asked quietly. "Dr Grey said…"

"She needs her throat reconstructing from the look of it. She'll need a scan so I can see the extent of the damage. But I'll operate. Yes." Mark said looking neither of them in the eyes.

After a few moments silence his mother spoke again. "She's 16 now, Mark. She gets B's in school, mostly…and…and she works in a nursing home near our street, little money, but she likes it. And she likes music, she can play the guitar and…"

"Mom?" Mark interrupted.

"Yes?"

"What are you doing?" He asked, arms folded, bemused at the list of information she was telling him.

"I…." His mom sighed "I want you to get to know her." She looked at her daughter, whose eye lashes fluttering.

"We will. She can tell me herself when she's better…"

"She doesn't talk much…"

"Well she will after the surgery, it's an easy process to be honest, I've done it before, on cancer patients…" Mark explained.

"I mean before the…accident…she didn't talk much" His mom corrected. Mark raised an eyebrow but ignored the comment.

"What actually happened?" He asked.

"Like I told Dr Grey, mugged."

Mark didn't buy it. Lexie had been right, some of the bruises looked like they had been there a while, and there were half healed scars. He took his mothers trembling pale hand, "Mom, what _really _happened?"

* * *

Meredith ran her fingers through her long sandy hair, sweeping it off her face. "Do you guys think Mark looked like he had seen a ghost when he looked at the patient"?" She asked. It had been such a weird situation, Meredith couldn't get over it. She had never pictured Sloan with a family.

"He never told me he had a sister!" Lexie commented.

"Why would he have?" Meredith asked.

"No reason!" Lexie quickly amended "I just meant, I've worked with him a lot recently, and when I've like, spoken about you he hasn't spoken about a sister." No one knew about their relationship yet. And she intended it to be kept that way. She wanted it kept especially from her sister Meredith, who had told Derek to tell Sloan to keep 'little Sloan' out of 'Little Grey'.

"You speak about me to Sloan?" Meredith asked, hands on hips.

Lexie was digging herself a very large hole. "Well.. I used to before I had any friends here…"

"What about me?" George asked, hurt. He had befriended Lexie when he repeated his intern year.

"Well other than you… I wouldn't have put you in the middle of us…" Lexie tried to explain.

"You know what Grey, it doesn't matter!" Izzie interrupted. "This is huge. Mark Sloan's little sister is in _our _hospital, in our clinic, under our watch… and she's going in for an operation. Domestic abuse case, clearly! No wonder Sloan's messed up and all sleazy, I mean if that's the state of his home life!!" Izzie was clearly very interested in this.

"Derek told me that Mark left home at 17 and lived with Derek's family until they went to college. Didn't tell me why though. Maybe that's it. Maybe Sloan's dad beat him up!" Meredith speculated.

"Or mom?" George added.

Izzie shook her head "No way, didn't you see her, she's tiny, and obviously frightened. She's probably a punching bag too! So Sloan just left his mom and sister to get beaten up and he went off with Mc Dreamy having sex with anything that moved?" This hurt Lexie's feeling, both for herself and her boyfriend / lover Mark. Not that she could express her feelings, otherwise the truth would come out. "Oh I can't wait to tell everyone!" Izzie said excitedly.

"You'll do no such thing Stevens. That goes for the rest of you too" Mark and his mother had stepped out from the cubicle and were headed for the cafeteria. "This is a private matter, and I will have non of you speculating anything. It is my business. And if I hear of any one of you mentioning it again to anyone, including each other. Not only will none of you scrub in, I will see to it that none of you see an OR for weeks. Got it?" They nodded in unison. "Good. Now take her up to the ward and have her settled in." And with that he and his mother headed out the doors, leaving the interns to look at one another, tales between their legs.

Meredith was the first to snap out of it. "Come on George let's get her upstairs. Izzie?"

"I'll stay here, I'm on clinic all day." Izzie said, picking up charts again.

"Meredith… I mean Dr Grey? Can I come up too? It's just, I was the first Doctor to see her…I want to make sure she's ok…" 'And this way I can stay close to Mark' she thought as a follow on. Meredith looked at Izzie who said that was fine as long as she came back down to help. George offered to help Izzie in the clinic while the Greys took Sloan's sister upstairs.

In the elevator, Lexie and Meredith stood awkwardly at the end of Ellie's bed, not saying anything to one another. Ellie was wide awake now and her BP was up, which concerned the doctors, and so they kept an eye on the machine more clearly.

"So I was going to order in Chinese food tonight Lex. You want some?" Meredith asked out the blue.

Lexie looked up from the floor and tucked her hair behind her ears, "Sure that sounds great, thanks Meredith." She smiled at her sister, happy that she'd been included.

"So you haven't been home much lately… where've you been staying?" Meredith asked, trying to sound casual and uncaring, when really she did care.

"Oh.. no where…I did a few night shifts here and there… and stayed at friends places…the on call room…"

"On call room? Who with?"

"Oh no one!" Lexie answered quickly. "Not everyone uses the on call room just for sex you know!"

Meredith laughed at Lexie's defensiveness. "Alright Lexie calm down!" the doors opened and they went through, guiding and pushing the bed to a spare room.

Once the Greys had hooked the monitors and the oxygen mask up to Ellie, Lexie opened the curtains to let in more light, and to brighten the dull light blue room up. Ellie still hadn't said anything, partly because she was in too much pain Lexie assumed, but Lexie had expected to her to ask where her mother and brother where, but she hadn't even made any gestures. She just lay on the bed, eyes cast down, hands on top of her stomach barely moving.

* * *

Later on, several of the interns were in the cafeteria grabbing a quick lunch, and inevitably, all anyone could talk about, despite his harsh threats, was the situation regarding Ellie, now renamed as "Small Sloan", which then lead to an inappropriate joke from Alex Karev regarding the size of Dr Sloan's manhood.

"Well when Lexie and I gave her a routine investigation, we found more lacerations on her back and legs. Really bad ones on her back. It's so messed up!" Meredith told them.

"How could anyone do that to their kid?" George asked shaking his head as he took a bite of his pudding.

"Step kid." Lexie corrected, staring at her chicken salad glumly.

"Whatever, even so… shouldn't do it!!!" Karev argued. This sentence caused a few heads to turn in his direction. Alex had a slight reputation as being a nasty piece of work. "What?" he asked their questioning faces. "I'm allowed to feel remorse for a patient aren't I"

"Of course you are!" Meredith encouraged.

"At least I'm not likely to go cut his IV" he sniggered, looking in Izzie's direction.

Izzie, who had had a crappy morning in the Clinic despite this case was rapidly losing patience with Karev, slammed her tray down on the table, shot him a glare, rose from the table and strode off. The others groaned and rolled their eyes. They looked at Alex.

"I'm going, I'm going!" He said, also standing "I was only joking" he stressed as he headed off after the fuming blonde lady he secretly desired.

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_Ok guys, that's it for chapter 2. _

_Hope it was ok, and you enjoyed it. Going to explore Mark's story more in depth in the next chapter. Thanks for the amazing feedback from you wonderful people who reviewed. You're my stars!!!_

_ambz08, Sunlitdayz14, hhsprincess, Emowyen, lostie21, LMN08_

_If I forgot you, please forgive me, it's 2.09am here in the UK and I've been working from 4pm til 1.30am… yes that's right, sob story. But true. Haha_

_Please REVIEW the next chapter, coming to a PC near you soon!_


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks for the great response guys. Such a great confidence boost.

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He looked at her, her head bent over the tea cup. The wisps of steam rose up from the cup of tea and wove in and out of her hair. Mark's memory of his mother wasn't this. She had more lines on her face now, bags round her eyes, all colours drained from her face. Her hair colour was different too. Where it had once been bright and golden. It was dull, lifeless and greying in places. Her eyes no longer sparkled. But then, Mark remembered, they stopped sparkling the day his dad died. He lifted his polystyrene cup containing his precious vanilla latte to his lips, parted them and sipped, allowing the warm liquid flow across his tongue and down his throat in an attempt to thaw his suddenly cold body. He put the cup down on the table and licked his lips. He knew he had to ask. He also knew that his mom probably wouldn't tell him the truth. She was stirring her tea gently, not clanking the spoon against the side, as so many people did.

"Where is he?" Mark asked, leaning forward and bracing himself on the table.

"Work" She answered, not looking up from her drink.

"Does he know you're here?"

"…No…"

There were a few moments of silence whilst Mark digested this. "Mom, are you sure Ellie was mugged?" She nodded. "Because her marks look awfully like domestic abuse." She stopped stirring her tea. Just for a moment.

"She was mugged." Mrs Sloan-Jacobs stated.

"Then explain why some of those bruises and marks look old." Mark demanded, not raising his voice.

"She falls down a lot."

"I'm sure…" Mark said in a disbelieving tone.

"She was mugged." She repeated, hand shaking.

Mark hesitated, then reached across the table and wrapped his huge hand around her tiny delicate one and squeezed gently. She looked at him, eyes glistening. "No matter how many times you say it mom, it wont make it true."

Silence engulfed mother and son, feelings flowing from one to the other through their interlocked hands. So many things she wanted to tell him, so many things he should know, but never could. He wanted her to know how sorry he was for abandoning them. He just couldn't bring himself to say it. Out the corner of his eye, he saw Lexie approaching. Had it been any other day, or any other circumstance, his heart would have lifted and melted a little as he saw the bright young interns striding towards him, her soft, shiny hair moving around her face. But not today. Today his heart didn't lift. He didn't smile. He didn't dream about taking her in his arms and kissing her passionately as he did normally. Not today. Lexie noticed the look on his face. She smiled crookedly and continued her pace towards him. Mark didn't want to deal with her now. He frowned at her. Lexie stopped in mid stride. He hadn't frowned at her in such a long time. On some level, she knew he was preoccupied with family problems, but that didn't stop it hurting any less. He shook his head, then turned back to his mother. Embarrassed. Lexie looked around, hoping no one had noticed. Sadie, who was leaning against the fruit juice machine grinned her smarmy grin. It made Lexie's stomach churn. Lexie glared at her for a minute, turned around and strode out the room.

"How long has he been hitting her." Mark asked a while later, breaking the silence.

His mother didn't answer at first. "Before you left…" She said quietly. "This isn't the worst" She added softly afterwards. Mrs Sloan-Jacobs felt her sons grip on her hand tighten to an almost painful grip. She looked at his face. He was no longer looking at her, but the anger was clear. As was the pain. Lines in his face displayed his emotions all to well.

"Why did he do it?"

"What do you mean?"

"Why did he do it today?" Mark asked. "Why this time. He must have had a reason"

"There were no beers left" She answered as if it was the most rational explanation ever.

"And that's Ellie's fault?" His knuckles turned white.

"Well… he thinks so." As Mark looked as though he was about to hit something, she added. "He does love us Mark, he does. He takes care of us, pays the bills, for the food…for Ellie's lessons. He just… looses it sometimes…"

Mark's head snapped in her direction. "Love does not put someone in hospital!" he stated. Unless of course, your girlfriend breaks your penis during sex, he thought, but quickly discarded that thought. "How _often_ does he lose it?" He demanded.

"Weekly…" His mother answered, head bowed. "It depends."

"And you let him?" He accused. Part of him wondered why he was suddenly angry at his mother…

"I can't stop him. I've begged Mark."

"Well you didn't beg hard enough. Look where it's landed her!" Mark yelled. He got up, let go of her hand and began walking away.

"You were the one that abandoned us Mark. You knew what was going on and you left. So don't accuse me of doing nothing!" His mother yelled at his back. Mark kept walking.

Meredith, Christina, George, Alex and Izzie all stared from across the cafeteria at the argument, mouths open. As Mark strode past he yelled at them "Get back to work!" George and Izzie stood and ran off towards the clinic. Meredith, Alex and Christina all exchanged looks of disbelief.

* *

"MOVE!" Derek Shepherd heard Mark yell to a couple of auxillary Nurses who were gathered chatting in the middle of the corridor. At his command. They all separated, allowing him to walk through. Derek put his charts down and ran after his friend. He gabbed his arm.

"Mark, what's going on?" He asked, breathlessly trying to stop him.

"Nothing!" He rawred.

"Sure looks like nothing" Derek commented pushing his friend against the wall to slow him down.

Mark looked at Derek in sheer anger, and emotion he had never seen Mark wear before. "It's Ellie" he explained.

"Your little sister?" He asked, confused. "You haven't seen her in…"

"In years, don't you think I know that?" Mark answered, starting to walk off again..

"What's she doing here?" Derek demanded opening the door to Mark's office and pushing him in.

"She's on the ward. Needs her throat reconstructing."

"Throat reconstructing… why? What happened?"

"My poor excuse for a step dad is what happened." Mark pushed a stack of paper work off his desk and sat in his chair. Derek perched on the now clear desk and waited for Mark to continue. "He's been beating her up. My mom too probably." He sighed.

"He's what?" Derek said, getting angry too. He'd had a soft spot for Ellie when they were younger. She was a cutie.

Mark nodded. "fifteen years. Fifteen years this has been going on for. And I they come to me now? Why now?!"

"Ask Ellie?" Derek suggested.

* * * *

"Hey." Mark said, leaning against the door. Ellie's eyes darted up towards him. And she mouthed a 'hello' in response. "How you feeling?" He asked gently. She shrugged. Mark smiled a little. He looked around the room. "Not exactly exciting is it. At least you're on your own, rather than with a load of moany old women" he tried to laugh. She smiled. His heart melted a little at the sight. He had spent fifteen years building a shell around himself as a form of protection. He had never let anyone in, nor let his feeling out. He had recently come close, however, to letting a certain beautiful intern in on his life.

Mark stepped further into the room, opened the blinds to let in more light then sat on the side of her bed next to his sister. "Well you've grown into a beautiful young girl…" he tried. Ellie blushed, but didn't respond. "Mom says you get As and Bs in school? That's great!" Again, no response, so he tried once more. "Wow, you're hair is really long." Mentally, Mark kicked himself. What kind of thing was that to say to your sister who was in hospital due to domestic violence. He looked down into his lap and made a "ugh" noise.

"You're going grey!" Ellie hoarsely commented.

Mark looked up and smiled, which then grew to a grin when he noticed she was smiling back. He took her hand which was warm, but bruised. As his eyes glanced over her sore body his anger returned.

Ellie could see it coming through his facial expression, she felt worried, and pulled her hand from his, folding it across her body tightly. Mark swallowed. It surprised him how much this little action hurt him. He apologised and looked around the room. Sky blue paint decorated the walls, there was a brightly patterned curtain hanging from the rails around the bed with a variety of geometric shapes printed on it. Next to her bed was a night stand, with room underneath for clothes and other personal effects. Ellie's merely contained her blue jeans, jumper and scarf and hat set she had worn to the hospital. Now she was wearing standard hospital issue night gown. It was ugly, grey and loose. He made a mental note to go out and buy her a set of pyjamas to wear whilst she recovered from the surgery.

"Myself and another Dr will be prepping you for your surgery in a little while." Mark informed her, leaning back to the end of her bed where her chart hung. He scanned it for information on her vitals and nodded. "How's the pain? You could have more morphine if you would like." Her face suggested that another shot of morphine would be ideal. Mark went to the trolley outside where the nurses kept equipment such as morphine, had a nurse unlock it for him and returned. He stood next to her upper body. Gently, he took her arm in his hands and pushed the gown up, away from her skin. "This will hurt!" Mark told her, they locked eyes, and he pushed the needle into her skin. As her pushed the plunger into the syringe, he was surprised to see that her face didn't flicker, normally even those with high pain thresholds falter. But she didn't. Her face relaxed a few minutes later. Clearly the pain relief was working.

Mark sat next to her again, figuring that now would be a decent time to talk to her about her step dad, she would be calm, and lethargic. He licked his lips and prepared to speak. He opened his mouth and nothing came out. Ellie's eyes fixated on him, he didn't know what to say, how to start the conversation. How does _anyone_ start a conversation like that?

"I'm sorry." He said simply. "I'm sorry dad died, I'm sorry mom married that scum…I'm sorry I left…I'm sorry…" he lowered his volume. "I'm sorry I left when I knew what was happening. I'm just… sorry…" Brother and sister looked at one another, in a way they had never been able to do. Ellie reached out and squeezed one of Mark's huge fingers. He smiled a little, then sobered his expression, continuing he said: "I wish I knew you El, I want to know you."

"Achem…"

Mark spun round, ready to yell. "Oh, Chief…it's you."

Dr Webber, chief of surgery stepped into Ellie Sloan's room, and put a hand on Mark's shoulder supportively. "Hello Ellie, nice to meet you. I'm Dr Webber." Ellie smiled slightly in response. Her throat was too sore to nod. The chief turned his attention to his head of plastics. "How you holding up Mark?" He asked informally.

"Fine" he lied.

"Are you sure you're up to this surgery…? I could get someone in from Mercy West…" Dr Webber offered.

"I'm not letting any Doctor, other than myself lay a hand on her." Mark stated finally.

"I understand. We're all here if you need us."

"Right." Mark replied, turning back to his sister.

Dr Webber crouched to Mark's ear level and whispered. "You could do with speaking more softly" He suggested. "Don't frighten her!" Mark was about to tell him where to go, but by the time he'd decided on the best way to tell him to shove it, without getting fired, the chief had left the room.

"Sorry." Mark apologised to Ellie. "This has all come as a shock to me, I never expected to see either of you again. I've built a life for me here. I went to college, got my degree, trained in general surgery, then specialised to plastics. Now I'm the best around" He told her proudly. "I have…I think…a girlfriend…friends…This all shocked me, you guys turning up like this…Not that I don't want you here…" He was rambling. "Under different circumstances of course."

Dr Bailey knocked on the door, "Dr Sloan? O.R 5 will be ready in half an hour. Would you like to start prepping?"

Mrs Sloan-Jacobs bent over her daughter and kissed her on the forehead. "See you when you wake up" she whispered shakily, stroking her daughters hair. She stepped away, tears rolling down her cheek.

"Ready to rock and roll?" The porter asked Ellie, attempting to lighten the dire mood. When she didn't respond he shrugged, and signalled to his partner to start pushing the bed towards the O.R room.

As they headed down the various corridors, nurses, doctors and cleaners alike all stopped to watch her go by, like she was some kind of circus freak. Everyone was interested in the human link to Mark which didn't include sex. Ellie felt on show, and wished the ground would swallow her up. She was very grateful when she was wheeled into the O.R room. It wasn't how she'd expected. She had anticipated a strong 'hospital' smell, and lots of noises from different machines. There was no weird smell. No smell at all in fact. And the only noise she could hear so far was coming from an iPod docking station in the corner, which played slow and relaxing music. She looked at the ceiling at the big silver lights and winced at their brightness. A head suddenly blocked the light and allowed her to unscrunch her eyes. Mark's head hovered over hers. At least, she thought it was Mark's. His hair was covered by a blue cap, and his mouth with a mask. The only thing visible was his eyes. They looked kind, but worried Ellie decided. Ellie looked around at the other people in the room. A number of nurses stood by various machines and trays of sharp things. Mark beckoned two people wearing scrubs to him. "Ellie, this is Dr Grey, and Dr Grey." Ellie looked a little confused, and wondered if he had got the names right. "Big Grey, and little Grey. Sisters" He confirmed. "They'll be assisting me in your surgery." He pointed to a short stout women by her feet. "And this is Dr Bailey, you've already met." Bailey nodded and smiled. "Right then. Lets get down to it!" He smiled. "See you soon, I promise." He stroked her hand, smiled and disappeared.

One of the Dr Grey's took his place "Ok Ellie" she said carefully attaching a tube to her face. "I'm going to need to try and count backwards from 10 for me please!"

"10…9…8…" Ellie whispered painfully "…7........................6……"

"Here I go." Said Mark, taking a scalpel from Lexie's hand. She winked at him.

X x x x x x x x

Work kept me late. Again! And I had to shop for my little sister's birthday present before work, and so have only just had chance to finish this last page and upload. Please tell me what you think.  
Alexia Mae. xxx


	4. Chapter 4

Thanks for the great repsone again guys! Just to clear things up, I'm from the UK and can only get updated with the season every Thursday, so the last episode I've seen was the one with the multiple kidney transplant…and where Derek gets the credit for his and Meredith's clinical trial. But I have seen odd episodes from later in season 5. So if there is any discrepancies between this story and the show… that's why. Thanks and enjoy.

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By the time Christina got to the observation room which overlooked O.R 5, Mark Sloan was about to slice through the delicate skin on his little sister's bruised throat. She looked around the gallery. She'd only ever seen it this full on one or two rare occasions; once during a very tricky and complicated procedure, and the other when a famous medical genius was under the knife. Everyone had clearly gathered just to watch man-whore-Mark operate on his long lost sister. It was a rare sight to see Mark Sloan compassionate, and the hospital was buzzing with various gossip regarding the situation. Christina spotted a seat next to Izzie, she started moving towards it at the same time as one of her interns. He obviously hadn't seen her coming. The foolish intern sat down. Christina stood over him, hands on her hips, she glared down. Slowly, the intern looked up, a look of horror forming on his face. All Christina had to do was to raise one delicately plucked eyebrow and she sent the intern running from the front from seat to cower in the corner. She sat down, chuffed with herself.

"You're mean!" Izzie pointed out, keeping her gaze at the operation room.

"I am not, I'm his superior!" Christina pointed out. She looked at Izzie's lap were an abundance of sweets, chips, cans of soda, and an apple were balanced. "You brought snacks?" She asked disbelievingly.

Izzie looked at her, like it was the sanest thing to do, "Of course. Want an apple-swizzler?"

"Do I?!" Christina reached out greedily and took two and started chomping.

Meredith leant forward from the other side of Izzie, "I have sherbet if you want some, and George has pretzels." Christina gratefully accepted the snacks and turned her attention back to the surgery.

"What are you doing here?" Christina asked. "I thought you and Lexipedia were scrubbing in?"

"Sloan banished us." Meredith explained simply

"Am I late?" Alex said breathlessly as he threw himself through the door. "Aw dam! He's already started. Did I miss much?" he asked perching on the arm rest of the chair at the end of the row, occupied by Lexie.

"He's only just started. How cool is this?" Izzie told him. He looked at her and rolled her eyes. "Candy bar?" She offered. He shrugged and took one. "How weird is it that he's operating on his sister? I mean who gets to do that?"

"It's even cooler that it's his long lost sister!" George added.

"Finding your long lost sister isn't that great you guys…" Meredith said in a moany voice.

"Hey!!!" Lexie complained. That hurt. She didn't know why Meredith had to keep making comments like that. As far as Lexie was concerned, they had gotten past that stage.

"Oh god… Sorry Lex!" Meredith apologised. "I didn't know you were there" Meredith pulled a face.

"That's worse!" Lexie stressed. "Just forget it Meredith." She sighed and tried to focus on the surgery, rather than the fit of hysterical laughter shared immaturely between Meredith and Christina down the other end of the row of seats. George snorted, joining in with the laughing too. Lexie shoved him, annoyed that her close friend was acting like a stupid kid. "Can we just be grown ups and watch the surgery, please?"

"So what's the story behind this kid?" Alex asked, dipping his hand in Lexie's bag of nuts and shoving them in his mouth. He continued, mouth half full, "I mean, it's domestic right? Who's the one doing the punching?"

"Maybe it's Sloan's secret life!" Christina speculated.

"Don't be stupid!" Lexie argued. Christina threw her a disgusted look, which caused Lexie to cower and then repeat herself, in a more respectful tone. "I mean, Dr Sloan isn't like that, he wouldn't beat her up then operate on her just for kicks!"

"Wouldn't he?" Alex asked coyly.

"NO." Came a stern and recognisable voice over the intercom. The interns all froze in their seats, not daring to move, speak or blink. "I take it none of you knew the intercom on?" Again, no one spoke. "Stevens."

"Yes sir?" Izzie answered in a high pitched voice. She hiccoughed.

"What do you think you're doing bringing food into the gallery?"

"I uh…."

"Get it out. Now!"

Izzie jumped up gathering the food and wrappers into her arms, and took the other interns food of them as she passed and ran out of the door.

Next Mark turned his attention on Alex Karev. "Karev!"

"Yes sir!" Alex answered, a hint of fear in his voice.

"Don't you dare say things like that about me again. Understand? Get out of there!" Mark ordered. He glanced up to watch Alex stumble off his seat and run out the room. He put the scalpel down. "Grey."

Meredith stood up. "Yes Dr Sloan?"

"An apology to Little Grey is in order."

"Yes sir…" Meredith replied, humbly. She looked at Lexie, tilted her head and apologised quietly.

"Can't hear you Grey," Sloan sang.

"I'm sorry Dr Grey!" Meredith said louder as she stormed out of the room.

"Yang." He said as Meredith fled. Christina was already on her feet, anticipating her judgement. "You're not the new Nazi. You're not Burke's right hand girl anymore…."

"N-no Sir…" Christina replied clasping her hands together trying to ignore the jibe at her fiancé who had left her at the altar. "I'm going!" She added before Mark had chance to throw her out.

Lexie stood now, waiting to be dismissed too. Mark simply picked up the scalpel and began working again. She didn't know whether to sit or stand, so opted for leaning against the glass. Mark looked up at her again after a while and caught her eye. He winked at her.

Lexie felt her heart do a flip. Her pulse increased and her chest suddenly went tight. It still surprised her how, even after all these months that that one little action can made her heart leap and have such fickle reactions. Her pressed a hand to her cheek and felt the warmth of her face. She was blushing, and grinning like a Cheshire cat. Suddenly she felt wrong. She couldn't be happy, and smiling at a time like this. She sat down but then looked back at Mark. How _couldn't_ she be smiling she asked herself. _Look_ _at_ _him_! She thought _his perfect face, with the right amount of stubble and that perfect little moustache. And that hair. Oh I love running my fingers through his hair. _She closed her eyes and imagined herself caressing his smooth, toned torso and kissing each bit she could reach.

A steady beeping noise pulled her out from her dreams. She looked down into the OR and saw Sloan and nurses hurrying about. Ellie was bleeding. Something had torn. Lexie stood up and pressed her hands to the glass, watching in great anticipation.

"No dam it, NO!" She heard Mark yell through the intercom. "Come on Ellie. Fight!"

"Dr Sloan. Her heart's stopped." Nurse Rose announced.

_No! _Lexie gasped feeling entirely helpless.

Mark was saying nothing. There was now a eerie silence engulfing the room apart from one long steady beep coming from her heart machine. Suddenly Mark turned and thumped Ellie hard, just over her heart. The room gasped but said nothing. There was silence for an incredibly long three seconds and then.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

"BP's rising!" A nurse called.

"She's breathing!" Another announced.

Lexie saw Mark's shoulder fall, relaxing slightly. "Good girl" he said. "Well done. Thank you everyone." The nurses in the room, and Dr Bailey nodded in acknowledgement. "Let's finish this off shall we? Dr Grey. Will you please go find my mother and tell her we should be out in half an hour." Lexie nodded and left in pursuit of Mrs Sloan-Jacobs.

* * *

"Mrs Sloan-Jacobs?" Lexie asked, approaching a dainty women who was looking very concerned at her cup of what smelt like chicken soup. She looked up and nodded, eyes looking sad and wary. "Your daughter should be out of surgery in a little while. About half an hour." Lexie smiled, hoping to relax the clearly worried mother.

"How long do you think it will be until I can take her home?" She asked.

"I wouldn't like to guess really.. anywhere around a week." Lexie suggested, there were so many factors that contributed to her discharge date. Besides, she doubted Mark would want to let her go home to their step-dad.

"A week?" She squeaked. "We can't stay that long. She needs to be home. We need to be home, tomorrow..." Her hands started to tremble.

Lexie sat down beside her and put an arm on her back. "Your daughter has had major surgery, she wont be home tomorrow ma'am." She explained.

"You don't understand…."

"Your husband doesn't know you're here." Lexie stated. Mark's mother nodded. "Can you not tell him you're at your mothers, or a friends?"

"My parents died a few years ago. I don't really have many friends here."

"How about just saying Ellie is at a friend's house? Or a school field trip?" Lexie suggested, wracking her brains for ideas.

"It wouldn't work…He makes the decisions. She would have told him. He'd ring the school…"

Lexie gnawed on the inside of her lip. "Have you thought about just leaving him, and letting him get over it?" She realised it was the wrong thing to say when Mrs Sloan-Jacobs looked up horrified. "…I'm sorry… I shouldn't have…."

"I cant leave him. He loves us. We love him…"

"I know ma'am, all I meant was…maybe it would be better….for Ellie…to be away from him."

"He didn't do anything…she was mugged…" Sloan's mothers voice was breaking and faltered at the end of her sentence. Tears filled her grey eyes and trickled down her pale face. She caught them on the back of her hand and wiped them away.

"I'm sorry" Lexie tried again, "I was just trying to help… I thought that…."

"Well don't… please… I'm sorry, you seem like a nice girl Dr Grey, but you don't understand…so stop trying to."

Lexie understood where she was coming from. She decided to try one last tactic. "My mom died." She stated. When Mrs Sloan-Jacobs looked up at her, her face confused Lexie continued. She pushed the sleeves of her grey scrubs up, passed her elbow to display a fading ring of bruises around her wrist. "My dad didn't take it very well. Thought drinking was the way to get over it. Turns out, drinking and grief doesn't mix well." Mrs Sloan-Jacobs face was now full of attention, and also surprise. "I didn't want to leave home, he's my dad after all. But I realised I had to get out, or he could end up really hurting me."

"Why did you let him?" She asked quietly, her voice low and soft.

"What? Hurt me? Because I love him. Because He needed me, something to rant his rage at. I believed eventually he would get over it." Lexie shrugged and rolls her sleeves back down.

"But…you seem so… happy?"

"I am." Lexie smiled. "I've never been happier since I left that house, of course I feel sad, and guilty about my dad, and I miss him and my mom…but I'm better now. I have friends, work, a life…a sort of boyfriend. Life doesn't have to be just that. Bruises fade. Ellie's bruises and marks will fade. She needs a fresh start to begin healing the internal bruises and marks. And in my opinion, if I was allowed to voice my opinion on matters such as this, she wont get that chance living with your husband ma'am. Meaning no disrespect." Lexie smiled at her and touched her hand. "I'll go see how they are doing, and come and find you when she's out of surgery. Ok?" She stood up and started walking away.

"Dr Grey?" Came Mrs Sloan-Jacobs voice as she walked away. Lexie stopped and turned around. "She wasn't mugged." Her voice sounded resigned.

"I know."

A few minutes later, Lexie entered the scrub room, where Mark was scrubbing down. The operation had obviously finished and Ellie would be on her way to recovery, if she wasn't already there.

"Hey…" Lexie said standing beside him. He grunted in response. "How'd it go?"

"Other than the bleed earlier, all fine."

"So she'll be ok?" Lexie asked holding the bin open for him as he threw his mask inside.

"As long as she gets away from that Bastard!" Mark snapped. "How's my mother?"

"Worried."

"Of course." Mark dried his hand with a paper towel and leant against the side of the wash basin. "I don't know what to do here Little Grey."

"It's Lexie."

"I know. Little Grey sticks easier though" An edge of a smile crept up onto his face, then he quickly sobered. "I don't know how to talk to her…I keep making small talk… the weather.. the paint on the wall, that kind of thing. What do I say?"

"I'm probably not the best person to ask…"

"But you were the first one to speak to Meredith when you found her…" Mark said.

"Yes… but we all know how well that went down, don't we." Lexie sighed leaning against the wash basin close to him.

"Point taken." He rubbed his swollen eyes with his thumb and forefinger.

"My suggestion…take it slow…talk about neutral things, her likes her dislikes, your likes and dislikes…and maybe avoid talking about your Step dad." She recommended. Mark nodded in agreement. "It's not going to be easy Mark…I mean Dr Sloan." She smiled nervously as his hand brushed hers. Quickly she moved her hand out of the way.

"Sorry…"

"Don't be" Lexie said softly, placing her hand back down next to his. His fingers slowly wrapped themselves around her soft smooth fingers. They gazed into one another's eyes. She had to tilt her head back in order to see him fully. He ran a hand through her silky hair and enjoyed the light fragrance her hair produced. She smelt so good, like flowers and sweet things. He couldn't place the smell. Gently he stroked the nape of her neck, causing Lexie to shiver a little, but allowed for them to step closer to one another. Blood rushed to her face as she felt his hand grip the back of her neck. Her heart pace quickened as she realised he was bending down too kiss her. Eagerly she tilted her head up to meet him and closed her eyes, anticipating the warmth of his lips. He pressed his lips to hers and felt butterflies in his stomach, he had never experienced that feeling with any other girl, woman than Lexie. She made him feel good, and young, rather than the man whore his reputation described him to be. As their kiss deepened, Lexie slipped her arms up between them and locked them around his neck, Mark reached out with his other hand, and pressed it against her lower back, pushing their bodies closer together. He loved the feeling of Lexie pressed against him.

Stood outside the door were Derek and Meredith. "Why is Sloan kissing Little Grey?" She asked Derek. "I told you to tell him to keep Little Sloan out of Little Grey!" She moaned to him, appalled.

"I did tell him." Derek argued. "But since when does he listen to me?" He knocked on the door. "Sorry," he said, semi grinning as the two tore apart as though they had been electrocuted. "Was I interrupting something? Shouldn't you be in the clinic Dr Grey?"

"Uh yes sir!" Lexie said quickly. "I was just…"

"Oh I know what you were just." Derek commented. He nodded towards the clinic.

"Yes sir," she answered, embarrassed at being caught kissing her boss in the scrubs room. "Dr Sloan." She nodded, then left, flustered.

Derek looked at his life long friend and shook his head. "Little Sloan has not entered Little Grey!" Sloan told him raising his arms.

"Ahuh. You'd better keep it that way."

"Big Sloan on the other hand…" Mark continued, drying his hand with a paper towel and throwing it in the direction of a bin.

"Mark..!"

Outside, Meredith caught up with Lexie. "The apple doesn't fall far from the tree them, eh?" She said.

"I don't know what you mean." Lexie retorted, eyes keeping straight ahead.

"Kissing you're attending in scrubs room. Seriously Lexie, pick a new gig, one Grey has already been there, done that…"

"Thanks for the advice" Lexie replied, still facing forward.

"Listen to me Lexie. Mark Sloan is bad news. He's McSteamy for a reason…He's slept with…"

"More than half the staff here. I know Meredith."

"Good. I don't want you getting hurt."

Lexie stopped mid stride, totally shocked. "You don't?"

"Of course not!" Meredith confirmed putting her hands on her hips and looking around for eaves droppers.

"Why?"

"You're Little Grey." Meredith smiled and walked off, leaving Lexie, mouth open staring after her sister.

***

Mark was leaning against the wall in his sisters room, and was switching between watching the clock, and watching her sleep. He was convinced she should have woken by now. He'd checked her vitals and nothing seemed wrong so far, but it was still early days. He sighed and picked up her chart and scanned the information on there. It was pointless as he already knew it off by heart from the other 10 times he had read it, it just gave him something to do. He looked at his sister and sighed again. Looking out the window of the solo room he saw Lexie leaning on the desk watching him. She smiled and waved a subtly. He smiled back. Dr Bailey spotted Lexie doing nothing, and quickly hustled her away. She stopped and turned in Sloan's direction, shook her head and moved on. He chuckled lightly.

A little moan escaped Ellie's mouth, drawing his attention back to her. Her eyes were groggy, but open. She was awake. "Hey!" he said softly coming closer to her. "How are you feeling?"

"Sore" She whispered. "Mom?"

"She's just gone to get a coffee, she'll be back in a minute. Ellie nodded.

Mark sat on her bed and moved her loose hair from her face. "I did you're stitches perfectly" he told her "no one will ever know they were there." She smiled in appreciation. Mark poured her half a glass of water and helped her sip it. "You can have all the sorbet and ice cream you want, milkshakes too. All your food is going to be liquid for a few weeks" he told her. "The staff here will look after you better than anyone else. I've told them you are a priority" Ellie didn't seem to pleased with this, but secretly appreciated the thought.

"What are you doing here?"

A voice came from the doorway. Mark Sloan didn't need to turn round to know who it was.


	5. Chapter 5

To those of you who are new to the story, welcome, those who have been reading, and to those who have reviewed. This chapter is dedicated to you wonderful people : )

It's my little sister's birthday today, all say happy birthday, haha! She has like 8 of her "closest friends" with her having a sleepover in the den downstairs. I think the term "Sleep" over is kind of oxymoronic… should be called "stay-awake-and-fill-yourselves-full-of-sweets-and-other-forms-of-sugar-and-watch-scarey-films-over. Is that just me?

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"What are you doing here?" the gruff voice demanded to know. Mark ignored him, gripping onto the rail at the foot of Ellie's bed with all his strength, keeping his mouth tightly shut. "I said…" he began again.

"I heard what you said." Mark answered in a scarily quiet voice. He slowly turned round to face the man that had put his baby sister in hospital. In front of his stood a taller man than he, but about the same build. Mark figured he could probably take him. His hair was on a side parting, he was wearing a navy suit and red tie. He looked important. And authoritative.

"Helen has no right bringing Ellie here. She was fine. Helen shouldn't have involved this place. Or you!" He said sternly, folding his arms.

"My mother had every right to bring her daughter to hospital. She's sick. Because of you she is lying on a hospital bed trying to recover from major surgery in which she almost died. Do you understand that?" Mark yelled getting dangerously close to his step-father.

"Almost d-died?" Helen's meek voice questioned. Mark hadn't seen her enter behind her husband. He had been hoping to keep that from her, and Ellie. Too late for that now he supposed.

"Well it's not less than the brat deserved!" Frank Jacobs retorted, jabbing his extended finger in Ellie's direction. Ellie had sank in her bed the moment she saw her Step-father enter the room, wriggling low, so she was no longer sitting, she pulled the sheets up over her face, until only her eyes were showing. She had learnt long ago that it was better to watch what was happening than trying to listen and be surprised. She hated surprises.

"No less than she deserved? No less than she deserved???" Mark repeated, his voice not yet shouting, yet full of disbelief. "She is a great kid!!!"

Frank grinned a smarmy grin and folded his arms. "How would you know?" He asked, cocking an eyebrow. "You ran away when you weren't the favourite anymore. You don't know her."

"Shut up!" Mark warned.

"You ran away when you didn't like it. Your blaming me for hurting your mom and sister…you have no idea the pain _you_ caused them when you left, do you?" Frank was grinning, revelling in the power he held over his step son.

"Shut up…" Mark's voice wavered, less confident now.

"Hit a nerve have I? _Marky?_" He jested.

"It's _Dr_ Sloan to you. Frank." Mark told him, through clenched teeth. "You lost the right to call me by my first name the second you hit them!"

"Oh so little Marky is playing Dr is he now?Acting like you're the big man on campus." He laughed. "I know the truth. We all know the truth here Mark. You, are a coward!"

"What did you call me?"

"Coward"

"You need to shut up" Mark warned getting dangerously close to Frank, he clenched his fists, blood and adrenaline pumping round his body with such ferocity.

"Coward."

"Shut up!!!"

"Coward! Coward! COW-"

THWACK.

Mark's fist collided with Frank's face. Frank recoiled and reeled backwards clutching his now broken nose with his hands. Blood streamed from his nose, trickled down his hand and splattered on the floor. The smell of the iron in the blood overwhelmed the room, and a sudden silence ensued. So much adrenaline was surging through Mark's body he neither felt the pain nor cared that he would be in trouble, and possibly ruined his career forever.

"YOU BROKE MY NOSE!" Frank screamed, his eyes watering, and ears ringing.

"Yeah, and unfortunately for you. I'm the only Dr in this place that could fix it." Mark said, his hands still balled into fists. "That isn't half what you deserve!"

"You swine! How dare you?!" Frank launched him self at Mark, full throttle. The pair entwined their arms, both trying to defend and attack at the same time. Blood spilt from Frank's nose, Mark's split lip and covered the pair's clothes. Neither of them heard Helen's desperate pleas for them to stop. Then continued hitting, punching, kicking, pushing, shoving, kicking, pulling at one another.

Ellie, who had been frozen midpoint between fear and shock finally thawed out from her solid state. She swallowed painfully, wincing at the pain in her throat. She saw Frank punch Mark in the stomach, then across the face. Mark's head snapped round and they heard a loud click. Both men roared with pain.

"MARK!" Ellie screamed, and instantly put hands to her throat, which felt like it was on fire. She felt a tear and suddenly her hands were covered in warm, red liquid. Her stitches had undone. She screamed again, causing more damage, and more blood to come pouring out. Neither man noticed, too busy fighting in the corner.

Helen who had been cowering by her daughters bed took initiative and ran into the corridor. "HELP!" She screamed. "HELP ME!" She waited a second to see if people heard her then ran back into the room, where her daughter was coughing, arms flailing about the bed, choking on her own blood, and her son and husband had wrestled one another to the ground.

Alex Karev and Derek Shepherd were the first people on the scene. Derek quickly assessed the situation.

"Karev!" He pushed Alex in the direction of Mark and Frank, whilst he ran to Ellie.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" He said as he reached Ellie's side "Ellie, I'm Dr Shepherd" He explained "I'm a very good friend of your brothers ok? I'm going to help you. You _have_ to calm down!" Ellie was still panicking. "You have to calm for me to help ok? Trust me, it will be ok! I promise." Ellie and Derek's eyes met, Derek smiled reassuringly, and held his hand over her open wound to put pressure on it, in an attempt to slow the blood flow. Using his free hand he paged for a blood transfusion.

Meanwhile Karev was having trouble separating the men. Alex was strong himself, as he lifted weights everyday, and as the Chief had pointed out once, he was scrappy. A fighter. He had broken up many a bar brawl. He struggled to get a grip on the squirming men. He changed his tactic to screaming.

"Dr Sloan! Get off him!" He yelled. "he's not worth it!"

That wasn't working either evidently. And then, he saw his opportunity, he wrapped his arm round Mark Sloan's throat, putting him in a head lock and wrenched him away, causing Mark to splutter. He struggled in Karev's arms.

"He attacked me!" Frank Jacobs accused, getting up, wounded and bruise, he brushed himself down. "for no reason!"

"Liar!" Mark screamed and struggled against his captive to get at him. "Let me go Karev!"

"Sir, no! You have to calm down!" Alex tried to calm his boss, he was having a hard time keeping hold.

"I AM CALM!" Mark roared.

"MARK!" Derek screamed, having difficulties stopping the blood flow from Ellie's panicking body. "YOU HAVE TO STOP."

Mark's head whipped round to see Derek's hands clamped down on the gauze covering Ellie's throat. Both his hands, the gauze and the bed sheets were stained red with blood. Mark turned and pushed Alex away with a harsh shove to the chest and strode to Derek and Ellie's side. "Let me help." He ordered.

"I don't think that's a good idea do you?" Derek asked, feeling that the blood flow was calming down.

"I think you should let me look after my little sister!" He argued, face still red.

"No, I think you should go and calm down!" Derek through him a look. On some level, Mark knew his best friend was right. He looked between him and Ellie. Sighed and stormed out the room.

As he did, the Chief of surgery, Richard Webber stepped through the door and looked around the room. Mark was red in the face, had a split lip and his scrubs were torn across the shoulder. He glanced to the far corner were Frank Jacobs stood, clutching his arm, hid nose bent out of shape and bleeding profusely. Alex was stood close to him, leaning on the wall, watching him with a cautious eye. Next he looked to the bed where Derek stood with two nurses attempting to stop the bleeding. He put his hands on his hips, "What is going on here?"

Lexie Grey followed him in. "Mark? Oh my god, what happened to your face?"

"Your precious Doctor here attacked me out of the blue!" Frank Jacobs accused before anyone had chance to answer.

"Shut up!" Alex warned, raising a hand to his own chest, and taking pleasure in seeing the man recoil.

"Get out of here Karev!" The Chief roared.

"But…"

"OUT!" He yelled and pointed out of the door. Alex bowed his head and started towards the door. Mark tried to slip out at the same time. "Not you Sloan" he said grabbing Mark's scrubs with his fist. "Now someone tell me what caused my head of plastics to have a fight with a patient's father?"

"Step-father!" Mark spat, correcting his boss.

"Whatever! Explain yourself Sloan!"

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SORRY that this chapter is super short, but I have loads of work for college to be getting on with as I have done NOTHING over the week I've had off! Classics test tomorrow too : (

Looking forward to reading reviews. Wont be able to upload again until Tuesday evening, the boyfriend is taking me out for dinner and bowling on Monday evening – he spoils me!

Thanks!!


	6. Chapter 6

Hey guys. God! How long has it been since I updated? Forever!!! And I chose tonight to spend up dating rather than 3 pieces of homework. I love how I keep managing to talk my way out of work at college…Ah well. Enjoy. Please read and review. Reviews will make me more eager to update and write more. Love you all.

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The last time Mark had been in the chief's office, they had been toasting his latest success. Mark had reconstructed the face of a burns victim as well as fixing her hands so she would have full control and flexibility of them to continue her passion, painting. Her father had been so happy with Mark's work he gave the hospital a cheque, wrote to the board or directors explaining his gratitude and even went to the local new paper, and had them run the story, with Mark's name in headlines. The chief had been so pleased. Seattle Grace Hospital was getting back on it's feet after being ranking 12th. The chief had opened his draw, shuffled some files around and pulled out a bottle of his finest scotch, grinned, and pulled two glasses out. Chief Webber poured them each a glass and handed one to Mark. He was bursting with pride and happiness. They'd chinked glasses and said cheers, relaxing in the leather seats comfortable and happy with a good days work.

This was not like that time. True enough the office was still the same, the leather chairs were just as comfortable, the view was just as pretty, and the photograph and news paper clipping from that case was framed on the wall besides Dr Shepherd's clinical trial. There was no scotch this time. And no sign of happiness and pride coming from the Chief, and Mark was feeling anything but satisfaction and pride. Mark felt a deep throbbing in his nose, and on his jaw. His face felt still from the pain and dried blood. His hand was pounding in agony, and was cold, wrapped in an ice pack hurriedly given to him by a young, anxious intern named Lexie Grey. His scrubs were stained and torn, and he felt remorse, anger, and in all, pain. He looked up from his seat to see the chief leaning, his knuckles pressed hard against the desk, his face harsh, cold and stern. He sighed and Mark swallowed.

The chief's intercom rang. "Yes?" He answered.

"Chief, Dr Shepherd asked me to tell you that Ellie Sloan is stable, that the bleeding has stopped and she has had a successful blood transfusion." Emma, the chief's secretary announced, her voice tinny over the machine.

"Thank you Emma" The chief replied, not taking his eyes off mark. He hit the 'end call' button and continued to stare at his head of plastics.

Mark sighed, and gave in, knowing that was exactly what Dr Webber was waiting for. "What do you want me to say Richard?"

"Oh I don't know, tell me how the Tigers did at the quarter finals last night" he said sarcastically, only changing his position to release the pressure from his hands. "Explain what happened in Ellie Sloan's room!" He demanded.

"I was sat with Ellie. He came in. Pressed my buttons. We started shouting. We started fighting. Karev pulled me off him." Mark explained rubbing his neck.

"I know that. I want to know why you were fighting with Frank Jacobs." Richard said, now folding his arms.

"He called me a coward."

"A coward? Mark come on, he called you a coward and you punched him? Tell me you didn't punch a patient's relative because he called you a coward!"

"He's not 'a patient's relative. He's _my_ sisters _abusive _stepfather. He shouldn't be allowed any where near her! He's the reason she's in here!" Mark explained, getting angrier by the word.

The chief was silent, taking in all of what Mark said and was considering what to say next in this uncomfortable and awkward situation. "You should not have hit him Sloan. No matter the circumstances. I am appalled at you."

"I know…"

"No, you don't know! If he presses charges… I'm going to have to suspend you, do you know what that will do to this hospital, to my career? To yours? You better hope to god he doesn't press charges."

"And he better hope I don't press charges against his for domestic child abuse!" Mark began.

"Mark. You have no proof." The chief challenged.

"Then what do you call the girl lying in recovery with bruises and scars all over her body then?"

"Your sister." The chief said softly.

Again there was another silence. Mark knew he had to put his feelings for Frank aside. "I know it was irresponsible. But, Richard you have to understand. I haven't seen them, any of them in years! Then for my mom and my sister to turn up suddenly, out the blue, when everything was going so well, great job, great apartment, great girlfriend, great friends, Derek and I are back on track again. Everything was good. Then suddenly, I have my mother sitting opposite me in the canteen, shaking with fright, neither of us had anything to say, and my sister lying unconscious in a hospital bed." Mark took a breath. "Then that…that…roach! Had the audacity to turn up to my hospital, in my city and accuse me of abandoning my family…and blaming me for what's happened to them…" Mark felt the anger seep through his skin and float away. It felt good to talk about it. He'd never done that before.

"Better?" Richard asked.

"Much" Mark nodded.

"Good. Go downstairs, sort your hand and face out, then go home!" Richard ordered.

"But I have surgery…"

"Home. Bed. Rest. Come back tomorrow, visit your mom and sister, but do not scrub in. I'll have Dr Bailey explain to your patients that you have a family emergency. Home Sloan."

"Yes sir." He said, slowly easing himself up out of his chair. As he got to the dark stained door, he turned around and caught the chief's eyes "Thanks, Richard."

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Izzie stepped into the residents locker room to find Alex only wearing the bottom half of his blue scrubs.

"Well I appreciate this, I'm not sure anyone else will though!" She commented straddling the bench next to him and looking up into his eyes and smiling softly. "How come you're getting changed?" She asked pulling the band out of her hair, running her fingers through the loose curls and pulled it up in a bun, letting her side fringe as wispy bit fall loose, shaping her face.

Alex looked down at his beautiful girlfriend and mentally thanked god for her, he was so lucky, he would do anything for her. He definitely would never hurt her. Looking at Izzie, looking up at him smiling and waiting for a response, he couldn't help but think of Mark Sloan's mother, timid and submissive around her husband Frank, and he wondered if they had ever been happy, or if they had ever had a _normal _relationship. Izzie punched him gently in the thigh, reminding him that he still needed to answer her. "Blood." He pointed to a patch of Sloan's…or his stepfather's blood on his shirt, which was dumped on the floor by his trainer clad feet.

"What's that from?" Izzie asked, running her finger along his spine as he reached into his locker to pull out a new set of scrubs and lab coat.

"Didn't you hear?" he asked. She shook her head, blonde curls bouncing round her face. "Sloan went at it with his step dad in his sisters room. Knocked bells out of one another, I had to pull Sloan off him."

"Oh my god, no way!" she exclaimed excitedly. "Is Sloan hurt?"

Alex shrugged. "Broken nose I guess, split lip and a few other bumps and bruises I think, nothing major."

"And the step-dad?" She asked. Alex shrugged again. "Wow."

"It gets better". He slipped the scrub top over his nicely muscled torso and sat beside Izzie on the bench. "Or worse, depending on how you look at it."

"Shepherd came in with me, and realised something was up with his sister, I think she undid everything Sloan had done in the operation…blood everywhere."

"Oh my god!"

"I know. And then he called 911 of course and who answered but the chief! So the chief came in, saw me, Sloan and his dad wrestling around on the floor, blood from them everywhere, and Shepherd, his hands covered in Sloan's sister's blood. His face was a picture!"

"Oh my god!"

"Iz, you really need a new saying babe." Alex joked.

She shoved him, "Are you in trouble? You know – for fighting?"

Alex shook his head "No, Sloan vouched for me!" he laughed. "Never would have imagined it in a million years! Maybe he's going soft because his little sister's here!" he speculated.

"Maybe…So is he still hot or is his face messed up?"

"_Izzie_!!!"

"Lexie, pass me Mr Charles' x-rays again will you?" Meredith asked her younger sister, without taking her eyes from the notes she was reading, and simply held her hand out. "Lexie the…" Meredith looked up and saw her sister, head turned to the window, short straight brown hair falling over her face, hiding it from the world. "Lexie!" Meredith said a little louder. Still no response. "Dr Grey!" She said sternly.

Lexie jumped, and looked away from the window to Meredith "Yes Dr Grey?"

"The x-rays?"

"Oh, yeah, of course!" She stood, grabbed the two x-rays of their patient, Dr Charles's pelvis. She sat back on the stool and could feel Meredith's intense stare burning the back of her head. "What?"

"What's up with you Lex?" Meredith asked, putting her pen down on top of the x-rays and folding her arms. "You haven't been paying attention in the slightest. That's not like you."

"It's nothing…"

"Nothing?"

"I'm fine Meredith, promise!"

"Ok…" Meredith said finally, unconvinced, but decided to let it slide. She picked the pen up again, and put it in her mouth, chewing the end as she looked for any abnormalities on the x-ray that could explain their patients pain. There was blissful silence for her to work in…for about twelve seconds.

"I'm worried about Mark!" Lexie suddenly told her, spinning her stool round to face her sister and pulling it closer. She played with the ends of her conditioned hair as she spoke, "I've never seen him act like this…unless you count the time he and Derek had that little fight when he told Derek about us…anyway, besides that he's never been like this. Never angry, or sad, or…I don't know what it is. He's just different. Freak out different."

"Well, do you blame him? I freaked out when my long lost sister turned up!" Meredith said, shuffling her papers. Lexie pulled a face, made up partly of annoyance, partly laughter. "Well I did!" Meredith shrugged, as usual, speaking without considering her sister's feelings.

"Thanks Mer."

"I'm just saying, it's a lot to take in, clearly he had no idea he'd ever see them again…he wasn't expecting them to show up, least of all his sister needing an operation!" Meredith explained "Of course he's freaking out."

"I guess. But I wish he would freak out to me…" Lexie complained, resting her chin on her hand.

"He will, eventually. Try talking to him…" Meredith stroked Lexie's hair softly, just once, out of compassion and without thinking.

"What was that?" Lexie said, suddenly stiffening at the unfamiliar touch.

Meredith snapped her hand away, shocked at her own action. Meredith Grey did not show affection like that to anyone…besides Derek of course. And she certainly did not show her busy-bodying long lost sister affection. Meredith was dark and twisty, not lovey-dovey brady-bunch-esque. The gesture scared her, so quickly she gathered her files and speedily exited the room, leaving a shocked looking Lexie Grey staring after her. Meredith ran out the room and down the corridor, narrowly missing Dr Torres as she dived past her.

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"Why am I getting a feeling of Dejavu?" Callie Torres asked as she wiped clean the blood from Mark's neck."

"Shut up Callie" Mark said stiffly.

"Ooh, grouchy." Callie joked, putting cleanser on the wound.

"Callie…" Mark started, "I'm not in the mood."

"Clearly!" Callie muttered. "Ok, I'm going to start stitching now, are you going to let me numb it, or are you going to push through the pain like a big macho man?" she teased. Mark growled at her and glared at her, obviously not in the mood. "Ok, numb it is…"

"Give it here, I'll do it." Mark said, snatching the equipment.

"No, I really think I should do it!" Callie said, snatching it back.

"I said, give it here, I am trained in it for gods sake!"

"But you're my patient!" Callie argued.

"Like hell I am…"

"Like hell you're not. I'll do it!"

Mark groaned. "I'll do it!"

"I'll do it!" Came a soft, delicate voice, with a hint of nervousness, from behind the curtain. Callie pulled the curtain open, and there, stood a girl, arms folded over her chest, foot twitching uneasily.

"Little Grey…" Mark started.

"It's Lexie…please let me do it…I have a reputation – all the patients I've sutured say they barely feel a thing…" Lexie shrugged. "promise!"

"Up to you, Mark…" Callie said standing back.

"You'd better not make a mistake Lexie." Mark said, lying back, resigned.

Lexie grinned and took Callie's seat next to the bed and began working on his face. Callie left the room, secretly smiling to herself, happy that Mark, her person had found someone he was truly happy with, truly with, not just sleeping with. She laughed to herself, Mark Sloan was in a relationship. Now that was a funny thought.

Derek walked into Ellie's room followed by Alex Karev, who, after separating her fighting step-father and brother, and kept a close watch on Ellie, and so Derek had put him on her case officially. Ellie was resting, her mother no where to be seen.

"Good evening Ellie." He said coming down the side of her bed and lifting the chart off the foot post. "How are you feeling now?"

"Fine, thanks…" she said, clearing her throat first. She pushed herself to a sitting position with her scrawny arms and rested them on her lap.

"You been drinking?" He asked, nodding towards the plastic glass on the wood bed stand.

"Yes sir." She said, glancing awkwardly at Alex Karev, and tucking her elongated side fringe behind her ear.

"Good." Derek commented, making a note on her chart. "And how's the pain in your throat? What level would you say it's on."

She shrugged. "Four I guess."

"Four?" Derek repeated, somewhat surprised. She nodded.

"I gave her a shot of morphine 20 minutes ago Dr Shepherd." Alex interjected.

"Ahuh…Ok Ellie, you should be able to go home with your Mom in a day or two, as long as your blood count stays high, and you don't get infected. Ok?" Shepherd informed her whilst signing the chart.

"W-what about Frank?" She asked, biting her lip.

Shepherd glanced at Alex and motioned for him to shut the door, as the intern did so, he sat on the bed and smoothed the pale blue sheets. "We've uh been in touch with social services. And they aren't going to let you go home with Frank."

"What about me and mom, it's not our house… it's his!" Ellie said, beginning to panic.

"Well can you stay with grandparents?" He asked.

She shook her head, "we don't see my mom's…and …. I don't know my dads parents…we're going to have no home…aren't we…no were to live…no food… no money…and my hospital bills…how is my mom going to pay for them…"

"Doesn't your mother have a job?" Shepherd asked, keeping an eye on her heart monitor, from which an increasing frequency of beeps sounded. Ellie didn't answer, but started wringing her hands and glancing about edgily. "Ellie?"

"I cant…I cant…he might…"

"You can't what Ellie?" Derek asked getting more concerned and making a mental note to call for a psych consult. She didn't answer, but her heart rate increased. "Ok Ellie, you're are _going_ to have to calm down. Now, you're having a panic attack." With the help of Alex, they lowered the bed until she was lying down and then proceeded to try to calm her down. Placing his hands on her shoulders, and bracing he on the bed he looked into her eyes and spoke soothingly to calm her.

It didn't work.

Mark had been walking past, on his way to see her before he left and saw the commotion. He dived into the room, "What are your doing?"

"Panic attack!" Karev told him, stepping aside to let the big brother next to his little sister. Taking the pair in, Alex could see their similarities, in their eyes and smallish lips.

Mark went and sat on the bed and moved Derek's hands from her shoulder "hey, hey, hey…it's ok calm down…it's ok… no ones going to shout or hurt you, ok?" he didn't need to look at the monitor to know she was calming down. Her eyes poured into his, never moving. "Good" he said "Good girl…" He smiled.

"Sorry…" Ellie whispered breathlessly.

Mark ignored this, feeling she did not need to apologise, "Would you like a slush drink?" He asked, Ellie nodded. "Dr Karev here will go and get you one….cherry?" She nodded again. Mark turned his head, but didn't even need to ask, Karev was already half way out the door on his way.

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	7. Chapter 7

My beloved, patient readers. Lets not beat around the bush. I've just basically not been here! Not done anything! But HOW good is the show getting. I just watched season 5 episode 19 on youtube! I was like :O. anyway. Read, enjoy, review review review

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Lexie was in her room at Meredith's old house, which was ideally located just three minutes walk from Seattle Grace Hospital. Meredith had explained that that was the reason her mother, Ellis had bought the house – close proximity to the hospital, the gorgeous, old architecture and character of the manor house was only a secondary factor. When Lexie had first moved in, she had camped on the floor of George's room on the second floor, but had now finally been granted her very own room, the attic, courtesy of Derek's kind feelings towards his future-wife-to-be's homeless-long-lost-half-sister. And here she sat, cross legged on the floor, papers and textbooks scattered around her, a steaming cup of coffee between her bare legs. She held a yellow highlighter in her mouth and had the green pressed against a sheet.

A knock came at her door, and with the pen still clenched between her teeth she tried to shout "come in!" The door creaked open and a head popped cautiously round. This head was feathered with a mixture of greying dark hair, beautiful deep eyes, and a smiled that would make any girl go weak at the knees. "Mark!" Lexie said a little too excitedly, she grinned, pen lid still between her white teeth. He laughed at the sight, her hair loose and flowing around her shoulders save for her long fringe clipped back to the side, allowing her almond eyes to be seen clearly. She was wearing little pink, blue and white striped pyjama shorts and a tight faded pink top, her blue bra straps clearly visible. And of course, the pen lid in her mouth. _ She is too cute! _Mark thought to himself.

"Hey," He said stepping in the room, wearing a dark grey shirt which emphasised his muscles, and dark well fitting jeans, jumper held in his arm. "Having fun cutie?"

She blushed and took the pen out of her mouth "Great fun thanks" she replied completely sincerely.

He shut the door and leant against it. "I came to ask you a favour." He told her getting to the point. Lexie gathered her sheets together and carried them to her desk. "Don't stop on my account."

Lexie smiled and shook her head "I was going to stop now anyway, " She jumped onto her bed and leant against the head board. She patted the space next to her, indicating that he should sit down. "What's the favour?" she asked playing with the strap of her pyjama top until it fell from her shoulder.

Mark swallowed, grinned and sat beside her and cupped her head. "Not a sexual favour!" he told her then kissed her on her lips lightly.

"Oh…" she said blushing, and pushed the strap back to where it should be.

Mark pushed it down again and kissed her shoulder, and gently moved to the crevice of her neck, kissing a trail of soft touches, making her sigh in pleasure. "I need to borrow some of your clothes."

Lexie suddenly shot back from the land of sexiness. She looked at him, worrying images of him wearing heels and mini skirts flashed before her eyes. "What?" she demanded, pretty horrified.

"Oh god, not for me!" he said panicky, he coughing he continued in a more manly voice. "For Ellie. She can come home soon, and well… she and mom are going to stay with me for a bit. Until other arrangements can be made I mean. And she has no other clothes, except what she came in…"

"Can't your mom get some?" Lexie asked softly.

"It's complicated" Mark said looking away from her, not wishing to divulge the entire situation..

"Well sure then, I guess. Will they fit her?" Mark shrugged. Lexie got up and started rummaging through her boxes and drawers pulling various items out. "So they're staying at the Archfield with you?"

"Until further arrangements cane be made!" he repeated looking around. "You interns are really messy" he commented.

"And you residents are really mean" She said, pulling a tongue at him. "Ok, here's a pair of jeans and a skirt,, a couple of tees, and a few long shirt things… and a turtle neck, incase she wants to cover her neck up."

"Thanks, that's really considerate."

"What about school?"

"What? Mark asked, folding the clothes up.

"Ellie, school. Is she going to go back?"

"Not right now."

"Waiting until further arrangements are made?" Lexie teased, sitting back down beside him.

He glared at her. "Yes, until further arrangements can be made."

Lexie smiled a little. "Any news on the whereabouts of your da…step-dad?" She asked, stroking his hair.

He shook his head. "Any way, how is the studying going?"

"Good, I have good teachers after all." She replied, batting her eye lashes.

"How bout I teach you some more?" He offered gently pushing her down on the bed.

Meredith looked up as she heard a loud bump followed by a high pitched and a low pitched giggle.

"So much for keeping little Sloan out of Little Grey" Meredith snapped, glaring playfully at Derek.

"At least they're happy!" Derek said, not looking up from his news paper.

Meredith poured herself another cup of coffee. "Mmm I guess. Doesn't mean I have to like it!"

"No one said you did hunny."

"Shouldn't he be at the hospital with entertaining his sister instead of entertaining mine?"

"Shouldn't _you_ be at the hospital working?" Derek asked leaning back in his chair.

"You're right, I'm going, I'm going! I'm practically gone" she bent down and kissed him on his forehead, took a bite of his toast and headed towards the door.

"Meredith?" He called. "Your bag?" Derek waited, and counted to three, then smiled, hearing her hurried patting of feet as she ran back down the hall way, swiped the bag from where he held it casually over his shoulder and then run off to work again. He grinned and continued to read his paper.

A short while later he heard heavy footsteps coming down from the attic, across the upper hall way, down the stairs and along the corridor coming towards the kitchen. Light whistling accompanied the steps, and Mark entered the kitchen, wearing only his boxer briefs, barefooted and wandered to the fridge. He opened the door of the fridge and pulled out the milk carton and drank from it. Mid way through his 4th gulp, Derek said "You know that's unsanitary right?"

To Derek's delight, Mark jumped, choked and spat milk all over the place. Derek roared in hysterical laughter. Mark wiped the milk from around his mouth with the back of his hand and glared at the Neuro-surgeon who was banging his fist on the table and laughing.

"What are you doing here?" Mark demanded.

"I live here. What are you doing here?" Derek said wiping his eyes.

"Lexie………..I mean I came to see Lexie…for clothes…_stop laughing, don't be so immature._" Mark complained, clearing up his spilt milk.

"Wearing her clothes now too? Someone's whipped!" Derek laughed.

"Ha. Ha. They're loans, for Ellie…" Mark explained.

"Oh right" Derek got up and went to pour himself another coffee. "So she's got the all clear to go home then?"

"Mmm. Another day or two for observation…then she can go. She and Mom are going to stay at the hotel with me until they get stuff sorted."

"They're not going home?" Derek asked, handing his best friend a mug of strong black coffee.

Mark gritted his teeth, "They are not going back to him." He sighed "Besides, he's cleared off. They have no money. He never allowed Mom money, cards, cheque books. Nothing" He spat. Derek said nothing, yet waited for Mark to continue. "He completely controlled every inch of their lives Derek. And I didn't do anything to help them."

"You didn't know Mark…"

"I did. Why else would I have left? I did nothing about it!"

"Mark…"

"Ellie doesn't know how to live like a normal person. She's never known any different. She probably needs a psych consult for god's sake, but I wont consent to that – what kind of life would that give her? More restraints? More fear?"

"Yeah but Mark…you have no idea what's going on in her head… you don't know her" Derek said, trying to be rational.

"You're right. I don't know her. I don't know my _own_ sisters. For god's sake I know all of _your_ sisters. Like the back of my hand. Ask me what Ellie's favourite colour is…or her song, animal, car. I don't know. But I want to know her. I want to be there for her." Mark said, conveying the most emotion Derek had ever seen from his oldest friend in the history of their friendship.

Derek nodded, put a hand on his shoulder and gave him a reassuring squeeze, letting him know that he had his back.

Lexie stepped into the kitchen, now fully clothed, in jeans and a jumper, and a light scarf around her neck, hair off her face in a French braid. She smiled awkwardly, feeling bad for interrupting their manly moment. "Sorry" she apologises nervously. She held up Mark's pager and waved it. "you're being paged…"

Mark strode over, took the pager and read it. "Damn it!" He announced. "I got to go." He had one last sip of his coffee, kissed Lexie on the top of her head and stepped around her to leave, but not before giving her a light spank on her behind.

She jumped a little, in surprise and grinned as she watched him go, feeling very happy, loved and….giddy, putting a hand to her chest she felt her heart fluttering wildly, and she sighed.

"Calm down Grey" Derek said, as he handed her a cup of coffee.

"Oh…" She had forgot he was there. "Sorry Dr Shepherd" Gratefully she accepted the cup of 'Joe'

Derek laughed, "I'm just messing Lexie. I'm not your boss out of work…I'm just your…"

"long-lost-sister's-on-off-boss-slash-boyfriend-fiance-to-be-also-my-boss-guy-and-my-boyfriend-thing-who-is-also-my-boss's-best-friend?" Lexie offered.

"I was thinking more along the line of friend…" Derek said smiling gently. "But I guess your answer was more correct huh?"

Lexie smiled back, awkwardly.

"So Mark's a bit…"

"He wants to make up for leaving them…" Lexie explained.

"I know Lexie."

"He doesn't know what he's doing though…He wants to just pick right up where it left off…I don't think…"

"Lexie, Mark needs to do this, and he needs you to support him. Ok? Trust him. I've never seen him look at anyone the way he looks at you. You're his person. His Lexie." Derek said, looking Meredith's little sister directly in the eyes, holding her attention.

"Good afternoon Ellie!" Dr Bailey sang cheerfully as she entered Ellie Sloan's room and picked up her chart. "How are we doing today?" She asked, first checking her machine statistics.

"I'm ok, thanks Dr Bailey." Ellie replied, looking up from her book, one that Izzie had dropped off a few days before.

"Well you're voice is definitely getting better, how's your throat?"

"Fine" Ellie replied, looking back at the book.

"Too sore to eat?" Bailey asked, eyeing the uneaten lunch on her bed table.

"Hmm? No. I'm fine" Ellie replied once more.

"Then how come you aint ate? It's all soft stuff…" Bailey questioned.

"I wasn't hungry, that's all".

Bailey looked through her chart, and noticed a pattern, "Ellie, how come you haven't been eating much?" Ellie looked up, cheeks flushing, "It says on your chart you haven't been eating…"

She shrugged. "I just have a small apatite." She explained.

"Well ok then, just try and eat more, or you can't go home…" Bailey said, half joking.

"Um…Dr Bailey? Have you seen my mom?"

Bailey stopped what she was doing and thought. "Not for a few days, why you need me to talk to her about something?"

"No," Ellie said, then was quiet for a bit, "I haven't seen her in a few days either…That's normal…she does that sometimes… but I just thought…."

"You're in hospital. Your momma should be here…" Bailey said, sitting on the edge of the bed. "Where would she be?" When Ellie didn't answer, Bailey figured it out. "Oh, I see." She leant in and touched her hand. "You ok?"

"Fine, Dr Bailey." Ellie replied, in a rote like fashion.

"Mhmm. Heard that one before. Listen…if you ever…"

Just then the door swung open, "Ellie!" George said, poking is head inside "oh Hey Dr Bailey, I'll only be a second." Bailey looked between Ellie, who had seemed to suddenly perk up, and George, who was wearing a smiley, friendly face "I listened to that CD you recommended. It's awesome." Looking at his boss's glare he decided it wasn't the best time. "I'll er…be back at lunch, we'll chat yeah?" and with that he left, shutting the door and running off.

Bailey shook her head, and looked around the room, noticed a box of hardboiled sweets, a teddy and a bunch of balloons, as well as a stack of magazines and a pile of clothes. "The interns." Ellie said softly, after taking a sip of water. "They brought it all with them at lunch yesterday"

"Lunch?" Bailey asked reaching for the sweets and offering the box to her patient.

"They come and eat lunch in here now…Lexie too…"

"Oh they do, do they?" Bailey said, raising one neatly plucked eyebrow.

"Yeah, but Mark cant know, else they'd get in trouble" Ellie said as she unwrapped the sweet gently, smoothed the creases out of it and neatly placed the wrapper on the bedside table.

"Do you like them coming in for lunch?" Bailey asked, wanting to know before she decided to ban the irritable interns from crossing the line. Ellie shrugged, not wanting to look like she cared, though it was obvious to Bailey, she loved the company. Mark's appearance was sparse and in between, and now her mother had apparently done a runner… "You know, if you want something to do, you should ask Izzie to teach you how to knit…she's real good."

Bailey got up to leave, and as she did she looked at the young girl who sat alone on the bed, still scared, still broken. She shook her head. Life wasn't fair. Life wasn't fair, at all.

Sorry, it's super short! But it's 1am here, and I have college tomorrow

Please review

It motivates me

Thanks to all you WONDERFUL PEOPLE who already do

xxxxxx


	8. Chapter 8

Ellie sat on the end of her bed, swinging her legs underneath the bed and twisting the blue sheets in her hands. Her hair was loose, pushed back from her forehead with a blue head band that pinched her head a little uncomfortably. She ran her fingers through her hair and decided it definitely needed a good conditioning session – the shampoo and conditioner available from the hospital was not very good quality, and left her hair feeling 'gross' and tangled. For the most part, her hair was straight, but the ends twisted into groups of ringlets which annoyed her very much. She was wearing Dr Grey's clothes too. She assumed Dr Grey (the younger of the two Dr Greys) was her brother Mark's girlfriend, and somehow he had got her to lend Her own clothes. She had tried the blue jeans on, but they swamped her, so had stuck with her own grey jeans, complete with 'fashion' tears and nail varnish stains. She had covered her small upper frame in a long sleeved purple top, it was meant to be tight, but it still was too big. Due to the cold weather, she had also donned the grey woolly cardigan and manovered it around her neck carefully, as the bandages securing the pad covering her scars was very sticky, and the wool might stick to it. She'd been ready for about half an hour. Waiting for her mom and Mark to arrive to take her home. Well, what would be her new home for a few weeks – the Royal Archfield Hotel. Mark had a suit with an adjoining room that she and her mother would be staying in until her mom could get a job and could afford an apartment for the two of them.

Callie was watching Ellie from across the hallway, where she stood at the nurses station, next to Mark. She twisted her hair loosely round her index finger then looked up at her sullen friend, who's stubble had been neatly trimmed that morning.

"Still no sign of her?" Callie asked, head resting on her fist.

"No." Mark said, emotionlessly, eyes staring through the glass that separated him from his sister.

Callie looked up, frowning. "You don't sound surprised."

"I'm not." He took out his cell and pressed a few buttons. "I've called her 17 times. She hung up on me the last few times I tried!"

"Sounds like she doesn't to be contacted."

"Ya think???" Mark snapped, as he closed the cell phone roughly.

"Mark...." Callie said in a tired tone, returning to her comfier position of resting her face on her hand.

"What??" Mark snapped again, opening his cell phone again. He had never been a fidgiter, but after spending so much time with his neurotic intern Lexie he'd acquired some of her habits.

"You know you're going to have to control that snappy temper…" she started…

"What temper?" Mark demanded. Callie raised an eyebrow. "Ok so I have a temper when you wind me up!" he flattened his eye brows and glared at her.

"And you thinking having a little sister wont wind you up?" Callie laughed, as Derek joined them.

"Speaking for myself, with all of my sisters – you will be wound up to hell. Besides, she's a teenager." Derek commented, dropping a stack of charts on the station. He nodded towards the oblivious Ellie. "Aren't you taking her home today?"

"Supposedly with our Mom, but she's AWOL." Mark explained, checking his phone again.

"When did you last see her?" Callie asked, thinking.

"A few days or so." Mark shrugged "All my days run into one." Ellie looked up at that point, and flushed, noticing all the Drs staring at her, shyly she lifted a hand and waved, awkwardly. Mark warmed and smiled back, winking. She looked back at the floor. "Right…Callie, do me a favour and go and sort her release forms out while I…hang on" His cell began to buzz. "I'm ringing, it's my Mom" he announced, and ran to a corridor where he was safe to use the prohibited item. Pushing the door open, he flipped his cell phone open again. "Where the hell are you?" He demanded, without taking a breath.

"Mark…"

"You disappeared for four days, right when you know Ellie would be going home, what are you playing at Mom?"

"Mark?"

"What??" Mark snapped.

There was a pause, "I'm not coming back…"

"You're…what?" Mark stuttered, in disbelief. "You mean, you're not coming back tonight, you'll be here tomorrow?"

Another pause. "I'm not coming back, at all…" Her voice sounded shakey and soft.

"Are you with him? Is he making you stay? If you need my help say 'Ellie's fine'" Mark told her smartly, making sure she would say something that wouldn't sound like she was asking for help. He waited, in silence with no response for a few minutes. "Mom?" he questioned, worried.

"I need to make it work with Frank, Mark, and I cant do that with Ellie with me…"

"Mom, she's your daughter!!!" Mark yelled, disgusted.

"And she's your sister. She's your responsibility. A responsibility you owe me. You owe _us_ Mark." Mark's mother said, slowly down the phone. With every word, Mark's heart twinged and strained more and more.

"Mom…" He began. "You are not safe with him."

"I am Mark, Ellie…" His mother's voice dropped to a whisper, "Ellie wasn't safe with him. She will be with you. I want the best for her…"

"And how am I meant to deal with a teenager I don't know? I'm a surgeon. I work. I have a life! And a girlfriend"

"And a sister. Don't you want more for her?" His mom asked, still quietly.

"Yes…" Mark answered leaning against the wall and shutting his eyes. "But I want the best for you too."

There was a long pause.

"This _is_ the best for me".

Then there was a loud beep, and the phone call ended. Slowly he pulled the phone from his ear, closed the snap lid, slipped it in the pocket of his lab coat and pushed himself away from the white-washed wall. He took one step and took in a deep breath, then turned in one swift movement, making the coat swirl behind him. Mark kicked the wall, he kicked it hard. So hard that the sound of his foot hitting the stone wall echoed around the stair well. Taking a sharp intake of air, and biting his lips, he pressed his eyelids together and took a moment to get over the pain. He breathed in and out slowly.

He didn't hear Lexie creep up behind him. Biting her own lip, he stepped forward, raised her arm and lightly draped her hand onto his shoulder, she pressed down and gripped his muscles, alerting him to her presence.

Mark span round in surprise, accidentally pushing Lexie away, roughly with the back of his hand. Lexie, who was also caught off guard fell backwards trying to catch her footing as she slammed into the wall.

"Oh god, Lexie!" Mark cried as he reached out to grab her, managing to cup his hand behind her head just in time to protect it, and instead slamming his own hand onto the cold wall. "I'm so sorry! You just caught me off guard"

"It's ok, it's ok! I'm ok!" Lexie panted, catching her breath "I shouldn't have crept up on you." She smiled softly, laughing it off.

"Are you sure? I…" Mark felt so guilty, he's pushed Lexie into a wall, just like Frank did to his mom and Ellie.

"Mark! I'm fine, come here" She reached forward and took his face in her hands. "I'm fine. What's up with you?"

Mark was quiet for a few moments, enjoying Lexie's smooth hands, warm touch and loving smile. "She's not coming back. My mom, Ellie's mom, she's not coming back for her." When Lexie didn't respond he closed his eyes and swallowed. "I'm responsible for her now. How am I meant to look after a teenage girl? And there's school, clothes and all that rubbish I know nothing about." He swallowed and began pacing. "Surely there's a load of social services crap to go through. And I have work. I'll never be home! I'm in my prime too! I should be out partying and having fun with you. Good, sexy fun with you!"

"Relax" Lexie told him, taking his hand, "You've got me!" she tilted her head to the side, reached up and stroked his bristly jaw. "No matter what. I'll help" she smiled perfectly.

"You off home then Ellie?" Meredith asked, seeing her stood on her own, leaning against the nurses station, backpack hanging from one shoulder, and over sized clothes, that seemed familiar.

She nodded, her hair falling in front of her face, covering her eyes. Ellie brushed it back from her forehead and smiled, "Ahuh. Well, to the hotel that my brother's staying at."

Meredith smiled. "At least you get room service" She shrugged, leaning against the station too.

"I guess." Ellie smiled and traced circles on the work top.

Meredith was struggling to think of things to talk about. "Are those Lexie's clothes?"

"Um.. yeah… pretty much. It was really sweet of her to lend them to me…" Ellie replied. "I'll wash them and give them right back! I'll be real careful." Her voice began to sound panicky.

"Oh don't worry, I'm sure she wont mind." Meredith said waved it off. "So um.. do you like science? Biology?" she asked, looking round.

"Not really…"

"Oh…well what do you like at school?" Ellie shrugged. Meredith tried again, "Any idea what you want to do after school?"

"I don't know. I'd like to go travelling, around Europe?" Ellie replied, trying to sound like she didn't care.

"Really? I did that? Yeah just before I did my medical degree. It was great." Meredith explained. "I'd do it again, if I wasn't here." For the first time, Meredith noticed that Ellie actually looked excited about something. "I tell you what, I'll give Lexie my scrap book of my trip round Europe to give to you…"

"Really?"

"Sure, you can think about planning your trip then…though I'd suggest missing out all nighters at breweries or distilleries, bad, bad, bad headaches!" Meredith said. "But it's where I developed my love of tequila. And for that, I'll never be sorry" they laughed together.

"I hope you're not teaching my little sister bad drinking habits Dr Grey." Mark asked, putting a hand on Ellie's shoulder, trying to ignore the pang of sadness he felt when he felt her shudder beneath his light grip.

"Of course not Dr Sloan."

"Goodbye Dr Grey"

"Goodbye Dr Sloan, I'll give Lexie that book Ellie. See you." Meredith said, waving them off.

Mark led the way out the hospital, various people bidding their goodbyes, and see you soons. "So you made quite an impression here." Mark stated. "A better one than I did anyway."

"Why's that?" Ellie asked, struggling to keep up wit her brothers large stride.

Mark didn't notice and continued at his pace. "A number of reasons…I was punched out by Derek in the first five minutes of being here" he remembered. "I was hitting on Meredith."

"_Mark_!"

"To be fair to me, I didn't know who she was!" Mark argued looking at her. It was only then that he noticed her flushed face and breathlessness. He immediately stopped. "Are you ok? Is it your throat??"

"too fast…" Ellie replied, embarrassed. This was the most movement she'd done in weeks, and two weeks in bed, eating had taken its toll.

"Oh…Sorry…" he apologised awkwardly.

"Is mom meeting us at the hotel?" she asked, catching her breath, and wrapping his scarf tighter round her neck as they left the doors. Mark didn't know how to tell her, so there was a period of silence, which was then broken by Ellie, "Oh. She's not coming back for me, is she?"

"Not right now…" Mark said, pulling out the remote locking system for his tiny sports car, and pressing the open button, as they approached the silver car. "What do you think?" he asked as they both got in.

Ellie looked around, nodded then decided it was a "Penis extension."

That's all for now folks. Sorry about the time its taken for this chapter, and I'm sorry it's not grand.

Please review. And Also, check out my latest story, "Accidental."


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